Miss Miller - analysis of a Star and Dyers Theory

Artists may feel the need to reinvent themselves for a number of reasons, to which in the music industry this has happened on a large number of occasions throughout the years, ranging from the highest tier artists such as Michael Jackson. One reason perhaps is the need to branch out to a wider or different target audience. It would be needed for them to reinvent there image to do these as they have to cater there star portrayal towards what people within that target audience would expect upon them, as well as what they would find as being appealing. Another reason may be so that the artist receives a large amount of media courage from taking a big diverting change in there career, as well as there media portrayal. This would result in them receiving more media coverage through the controversy which is created through doing this, which in turn would assist with making sure that there potential new target audience would be capable of easily seeing the artists transformation.

One example of someone which has done this in the past is the highly talked about artist Justin Bieber, which has arisen controversy over the years as to his change in both music, appearance and media portrayal. His change came in the form of three changes, to which he started off as being a seemingly innocent looking pop artist (an example of one of his songs at the time being "baby"), who appealed mainly towards teenage girls. A few years after his media breakthrough, he begin to break into the hip hop genre with his song "boyfriend", to which his modern day music would be considered more as being electronica or dance, an example of which being "where are you now". His main changes came through the change in his genre of music, which links directly towards the target audience in which his music would be aimed towards. Because of this, alongside his change in music throughout the years, his image and media portrayal changed alongside this, his hair becoming more extravagant as the music genres he explored into progressed, alongside the introduction of him getting tattoos alongside other changes in his appearance, including clothing. His image during his pop genre stage was more innocent looking, which was probably to try and gain as big an audience as possible through looking like a harmless teenagers, and through his transformation to modern day, the change may be to symbolize his sense of rebellion which is often associated with songs which fall under the hip hop and dance genre, by doing so making his image more appealing for that audience in particular.

The artist which I would say has had the biggest change throughout the years in regards to there image within the media alongside there genre of songs is Miley Cyrus, which originated from being a star on the television show "Hanna Montana" on the Disney channel, to which to modern day she has certainly made a change to her and her music. The first music video of hers I shall be analyzing is one of her first music videos "The best of both worlds".

Within the video and song, there is an example of Goodwin's music theory being evident throughout. The music video does have some conventions throughout which would be expected of within the dance genre, one of which being that the clothing being worn by her in the video is quite trendy, which is common throughout videos in the pop genre. This is evident throughout the entire of the video, and is probably done with the aim of it fitting with the high school element and feel towards the portrayal of the video, which links towards the target audience of teens which is evident throughout the music video itself, as that can be seen as being the main demographic in the crowd. Other than the presence of conventions of the pop genre being evident at times, the overwhelming majority of the other 8 elements within good wins theory are not present throughout the music video.

Another Goodwins theory point within the music video is that there is a relationship between the lyrics and visuals. This is Miley Cyrus can be seen throughout the video performing the song lip syncing, while her performance previously has been edited in to match the visuals which can be seen on screen.

The genre of this video is particular is for best of both worlds could arguably fit into two different genres, that of the pop/ rock genre, to which there are a number of conventions of the rock genre which are present throughout, alongside there also being elements of being pop genre conventions. For this reason I shall state one from each individual genre as elements from both are present throughout.

For a rock genre, one which is commonly present throughout songs in the genre can be seen. This can be seen through the use of a low angle camera shot of the guitar player playing. This is common and convention to that of the rock genre as throughout there music videos, music instruments (more specifically electric guitars) are present in nearly every instance, to which is due to the nature of the music and the target audience to which they are trying to appeal to, the instrument itself almost representing the feeling of youth and rebellion (to an extent) which is evident throughout the music video. For this reason the target audience would find this appealing as it is what they would expect to be present for a music video which falls under this genre

For the pop genre elements throughout the video, alongside the presence of having fashionable clothing which is worn by those present throughout the video, another convention which can be seen is related towards the portrayal of the artist, to which they are commonly shown as being very happy and content with life, to which can be seen through the use of mise-en-scene, specifically the facial expression of the artist, to which is of Miley Cyrus smiling for the majority of the music video. This is convention of videos which fall under the pop genre, as the songs are usually of an positive and happy nature. This is appealing towards the target audience of young teens as it assists with the song being feel good and uplifting.

The video represents the artist in a number of ways. Within this music video by Miley Cyrus, she comes across as being fun and happy, to which being portrayed as being a down to earth person. This is evident through a number of things. Firstly, her clothing is controversial or really stand out and unorthodox, rather it is more everyday wear, that would be associated towards your average college girl, to which she appears to be portrayed as, although having an element of popularity/ fame through the lyrics of her song linking towards herself and her idol auto ego Hannah Montana.

The artist is shown as being a product within the music video. I believe this is due to the portrayal of Miley Cyrus throughout, which as mentioned previously is that of just being a down to earth college girl, which she is shown to be as it makes her come across as a more appealing idol because of this. The music videos setting almost looks like a high school performance, to which including the props, as well as the appearance of the other performers on stage. Due to her being placed in this background, it makes the visuals more appealing for the target audience as it is a similar setting to what they would see during there daily life.


The artist is not both ordinary and extraordinary, rather being portrayed as being down to earth and a relatable character. As mentioned in relation to the artists portrayal as well as the setting of the music video itself, this is as she is shown as simply being a college girl but with a famous auto ego (Hannah Montana), which links towards her media portrayal at the time due to that being the case of her hit television show on the Disney channel.

This video doesn't particularly have any references towards hegemony, although because of the nature of the music video and song genre if anything it would stay towards making the fans against hegemony. This is as it is aimed primarily towards teenagers, to which the message told to them by content creators in the music industry is often to rebel against society and social norms and to try and develop individuality. As the video has a very american college feel towards it, the idea of having fun and being young would be said to be present throughout, which is also evident through the colours of the props and sets, which are all very bright and happy colours.


The target audience for this particular music video by Miley Cyrus would be that of teenagers, this is for a number of reasons. This includes aspects such as the song itself coming from Miley Cyrus's time working with the Disney channel, the song itself being associated with her show and Miley at the time. Alongside this, the mise-en-scene use of both the artist and surrounding performers and props leans the video more towards appealing towards primarily a teen/ adolescent target audience. This is evident during a number of points during the music video, one particular example being seen through the use of straight cuts to edit the view point from being upon the artist the that of the crowd and fans, which can be seen to be primarily young teenagers.

As the video itself doesn't appear to have a concept behind it, the only messages and values which seem to be portrayed could be that of school spirit, as well as having fun during your youth. This is evident through the mise-en-scene use throughout the music video, such as the back up performers all wearing clothing which would be associated with the youths of america, to which there are a number of dancing segments. This portrays a happy and carefree vibe towards the viewer of the music video, possibly also promoting school spirit and individuality through this.

Party in the USA is the next video which was created and performed by Miley Cyrus, to which marked another change towards the type and style of music she had branched out to, as well as the start of her graduated change in media portrayal. Within the music video itself, evidence of Goodwin's music theory can be found within.

Alongside this, there is a large number of various genre conventions which can be seen throughout the video, the genre of this video oppose to the last one leaning more towards being part of the dance/ pop genre. The clearest cut genre convention which can be seen which leans more towards being a convention of the dance genre is the prescense of expensive sports cars, which is evident through the mise-en-scene, specifically the props of the cars. This is very conventional to that of the dance genre, being present throughout a large number of popular dance videos, one example being Calvin Harris's song summer, to which the cars are included to symbolize the feeling of youth and freedom. As the owners of the cars appear to be older teen, this enables for the target audience to relate to them as they may have only got there first car, to which the characters throughout are relatable, although also the viewer may aspire to the people and look up to them because of this, providing with both elements. For this reason this appeals towards the target audience by showing them in this relatable way, but to the extent where they are shown as being slightly higher up to the average teen, with the aim of making the viewer to aspire to be like them.

Another convention of the dance genre can be seen near the later end of the music video, to which a choreographed dance segment with back up dancers can be seen. This is achieved through the use of editing, specifically a jump cut to which the location of the video changes from performing on stage to changing to the dance routine. This is a common convention of the dance genre as organised dance segments are often included throughout, having the artists themselves being the main focus of the visuals, often being heavily performance based and having little to no element of having a concept behind the video, to which party in the USA provides with. This appeals towards the target audience as it enables them with more screen time of being able to watch the artist, being able to fully experience there performance of the song.

This particular music video portrays Miley Cyrus as being more mature compared to that of her portrayal in the best of both worlds. Its a similar portrayal to the extent that she is shown as being happy and carefree, emphasizing a strong sense of youth, although it is clear that her image begins to slowly graduate at this point as she has branch out from sticking just to her former Hannah Montana roots, to which she is trying to appeal to older teens through the conventions which can be seen throughout the video. The presence of having conventions such as the sports cars and girls at the beginning start away shows a contrast between the portrayal. In this video she also looks older, wearing what appears to be less makeup, as well as during the dance segment near the end of the video, although only brief it contains some flaunty elements to it briefly, but none the less the video itself has a more mature feel and nature to it, which is radiated through the portrayal of the artist.

I believe that the artist can be viewed as a product to an extent within party in the USA, although this isn't a full on portrayal. Near the very end of the music video, there about a 30 minute segment in which she is performing just on her own with the american flag in the background, by doing so making the focus of the visuals just upon her and the flag. This gives off a strong sense of american patriotism which she and the video itself shows, which could be a low key form of trying to attract american patriotism. Through this, she could arguably be considered as being a product as she is having something such as the american flag to be present for such a long solo segment to get that message across, as a large number of people would eventually end up seeing it one way or another. Although saying this, I believe that it is only to an extent that she is shown as being a product as there is no clear inter textual reference which can be seen throughout, which is often present in big/ popular artists music videos.

The artist I believe is not shown as being both ordinary and extraordinary in the music video, this is for a number of reasons, although it could be argued that at certain segments throughout she could be considered as being extraordinary. For the beginning and the majority of the middle segments, her portrayal is a lot more down to earth, to which she is surrounded by a large number of youths, to which she appears to blend in with them and not particularly stand out, being shown as simply being ordinary. Although saying this, came the later segments of the song, a number of solo segments can be seen to which she is the main focus of the visuals, alongside this she can be seen onstage with a large crowd watching, during these points being shown as being extraordinary. Similar to that of the first music video it links more towards the target audience of the music video as to why she is shown as being a down to earth relate able teenager for long segments.

This video places fans more against hegemony, similar to that of best of both worlds although as this song falls under both the dance and pop genre, alongside the nature of the video, it comes across as portraying a sense of having no rules and defiance, which is shown through a number of outlets. Alongside this, the setting of the video during segments in which the cars can be seen appear to be in a very Barron place, which links towards running away and living free without being ruled or led by anything.

Throughout the video, similar to that of the first video the messages and values which are shown throughout don't differ too much. As this particular song is very performance based and shows very little sign of having a potential concept behind the visuals, or at least a deep rooted and meaningful concept, the only messages and values which can be identified link towards the target audience of that of the video. This relates once again towards the feeling of having fun and being wild and free of rules and restrictions, radiating a feeling of youth and general happiness through the performances and dancing segments. 

We cant stop is the last music video I shall be analyzing, in which she branches out into yet another video of Miley Cyrus's, this being one of her more modern content which she has created. The music video itself has become very popular in recent years, receiving a monumental number of YouTube views Within this music video by Miley Cyrus, she once again opts for the branching out into the pop/ dance genre once again, although the video contains a large number of innuendo's and drug references in comparison to party in the USA.

Goodwin's music theory is also evident throughout this music video, to which it can be seen on a number of occasions. The one which is probably evident throughout the entire duration of the video or at least there are multiple examples of it is the voyeuristic treatment of the female body. One particular example of this can be seen through the use of cinematography, specifically a mid shot of the artist in a sexually explicit position. Images of a similar nature to this are present throughout the entire duration of the music video, to which being a common convention within the genre. This is appealing towards the target audience of the music video, to which is a wide global audience, as it appeals towards a larger diversity of people, this element appealing more towards male viewers although through the controversy of images such as this, the general popularity of the video may increase (which is evident with this video due to its immense YouTube success in regards to the number of views it achieved).

Throughout the music video of we cant stop, a large number of genre conventions from the pop/ dance genre can be seen. As mentioned previously, one of which being the voyeuristic treatment of the female body, another frequently used convention is that of the presence of having inter textual reference throughout the video, linking towards Goodwins music theory once again. At the beginning of the video this is evident as a beats pill can be seen. This is done with the aim of the wide audience to view the video, to which a large number of people it is advertised towards. This is appealing towards the target audience as the item itself links towards music and the music genre, and is a global and well known name.

Another genre convention which can be seen throughout the video can be seen almost instantly after the appearance of the inter textual reference, to which the artist Miley Cyrus can be seen wearing a large amount of gold jewelry, as well as having gold being put into her mouth. This can be seen through the iconography of the items themselves, to which are commonly present and certainly conventional to that of the genre. This is done to portray the artist as having a lot of money and genuinely being successful, giving them a positive image, to which may cause the viewer to aspire towards being them. For this reason it appeals towards the target audience as it portrays the artist in a positive and aspiring way.

Within this video, the representation of Miley Cyrus certainly differs to that of the previous videos, still having the sense of defiance and fun although this is shown in a more mature and raunchy way. Throughout many segments throughout the video she can be seen as showing her body off and wearing very little clothing, to which many sexual references are made. This drastic change in portrayal which can be seen from originally being the innocent young girl to the rebellious media icon which can be seen throughout this video could be done to strongly emphasis her change in portrayal, in doing so altering the group of people in which she appeals towards. Because of this within this video she is shown as not caring about what is expected of her and what has done in the past, and tries to promote this feeling to her viewer base also.

In this instance, I believe that the artist can in fact be viewed as being a product for a multiple number of reasons which is evident throughout. One main reason which is evident straight from the off at the beginning of the video is through the presence of having inter textual reference being present, in which a beats pill can be seen being played by the artist. As the video pre release would have been expected to receive a large number of YouTube views (which it did), as well as music channel views, having inter textual references being evident are done so that the low key advertising is viewed by as large an audience as possible.

The video is almost certainly against hegemony, to which I believe for a number of reasons. There are multiple segments throughout the video in which a strong sense of defiance is displayed, which can be seen through both the use of visuals as well as the lyrics themselves. Alongside the nature of the lyrics actually liking towards such an idea, there are multiple references to this idea being present throughout the video occurring from start to end. More so occurring at the end specifically, Miley Cyrus can be seen with other young adults in which they are laying down together as the sun goes down, which is symbolic to the freedom of youth, and generally letting off a care free vibe to the viewer which is also evident through the use of mise-en-scene, specifically the relax body posture of those present within the shot.

The target audience for this video I would say is teens, more so like the target audience for party in the USA due to the genre and nature of songs although instead it is catered more towards older teens appose to younger ones. This is evident throughout the difference in nature of the images which are present throughout, such as the voyeuristic treatment of the female body, alongside references to sex and drugs and other adult themes and such, whereas with the previous two videos the target audience was younger hence why the content was genuinely more tame.

I believe there are quite a few potential messages and values which are portrayed throughout the video, although due to the strange nature of the visuals throughout the entire duration of the video, potential concepts are going to be very subjective. There are many strange and unorthodox images which can be seen throughout the video, most noticeable which can be seen at the beginning. An example of one potential message could be seen through the use of cinematography, specifically a mid shot of a skull made out of fast food chips. This could possibly portray a negative message towards fast food and the fast food industry, which is achieved through the use of the skull being associated towards death. Another message/ value which the artist portrays throughout the video is that of promiscuity, as well as not caring about what others think and to genuinely just enjoy yourself and to have fun and act stupid and young, being not what is of expected of them.  

Overall, Miley Cyrus has clearly had a change in both her content which she has created, including her portrayal within the videos, as well her media portrayal and the target audiences which she is trying to appeal towards. I believe that the main reasons as to why she has changed so much over the years comes down to what audience she is aiming to appeal towards, which is heavily influenced by her portrayal. For this reason, originally catering towards younger teens in the best of both worlds, in party in the USA her appearance had evidently changed slightly so it was more appealing towards that audience, rather than just sticking to her Disney channel roots and the fan base she had originally gathered from her days back then. Due to this, to eradicate this image of being an innocent young girl which had been implied recently from her long standing fan base, the drastic change from her previous image to her new own is most probably done to branch out into a larger target audience, getting rid of the stigma of her fans only being young teens beforehand.

This research will help me decide upon which artist I want to opt for through a number of ways. Although the genre of music produced by Miley Cyrus is not of what I want to venture into, it has alerted me to the importance of maintaining a target audience, this is as the reason as why she has made so many changes in the past in regards to her content and media portrayal is due to this. This is a vital element when it comes to creating and releasing content due to it being the core to its potential success or failure as it is created for the viewers and general public, so it is essential that it is being catered towards the intended audience.